It is customary in many countries which celebrate Christmas to have a Christmas tree in houses as well as commercial locations which are decorated for display as part of the Christmas holiday season. Many individuals and businesses adhere to the custom of utilizing a live evergreen Christmas tree, typically a pine tree, which is cut for this purpose. Such cut evergreen Christmas trees are often acquired through commercial Christmas tree lots and the like which offer cut Christmas trees for sale in the days and weeks preceding Christmas.
The cut Christmas tree requires a stand in order to keep it upright and stable. The stand may be as simple as fastening a small sheet of plywood or boards, typically formed in an X-configuration, to the trunk of the tree. While such stands will often maintain the Christmas tree in an upright position, due to the lack of water the cut Christmas tree will quickly dry out and wither, which is undesirable.
In an effort to maintain the tree in its green and natural appearance as long as possible, a wide variety of Christmas tree stands have been created which incorporate a basin of water in which the trunk of the Christmas tree rests. The water basin must be periodically refilled as the tree absorbs the water from the basin. Christmas tree stands are desirable for use in the temporary display of fresh Christmas trees because keeping the tree stable, upright and fresh, staying green and smelling like pine, is necessary for the desired effect of a Christmas tree.
Christmas tree stand manufacturers have conceived of several devices and methods to achieve a secure and stable base. One common method includes the use of manually adjusted screws which are connected through threaded holes of the base and arranged in a circular pattern which perpendicularly screw into the outer surface of the trunk of the tree to secure it to the base and hold it upright, such as with respect to an associated water basin of the stand. While such stands are generally inexpensive, they are difficult and inconvenient to use. The location and quantity of the screws results in the need of an iterative process and multiple people involved in order to properly install the tree as typically one person must attempt to hold the tree generally upright and vertical while at least one other individual lies on the floor and tightens the screws and periodically adjusts the screws until the Christmas tree is held in place within the stand. If this is not done properly, the tree may be imbalanced and tip over. This can also occur over time as the tree increasingly dries and the screws either lose their grip if the tree shifts, causing it to become angled from vertical or even tip over completely. The screws can also penetrate the trunk, making the tree difficult to adjust over time or be removed from the stand at the end of the season. Screws and nuts are also prone to be lost over time. Due to the location of the screws to obtain relative stability, the water reservoir is also difficult to access under the tree to check the water level and add water.
Yet another tree stand utilizes a central rod extending upwardly from the water basin. A hole is bored into a length of the tree trunk and the tree trunk is placed upon the rod, which is inserted into the bored aperture. Drawbacks associated with such Christmas tree stands is that few Christmas tree lots and retailers provide the tree boring service. The alternative is for the consumer to perform the task using power tools and uncommon drill bits, which is also inconvenient and time consuming. Furthermore, if the bored aperture is not centrally located with respect to the Christmas tree, the Christmas tree will not stand vertically upright and can tip over due to an uneven distribution of weight over the stand.
Yet another Christmas tree stand involves the use of a clamp which is manually secured to the outer surface and circumference of the base of the tree trunk. The clamp may be adjustably tightened manually, such as using a foot pedal. While this Christmas tree stand may enable the use of as few as a single person to install the Christmas tree, it is often much more expensive to purchase due to the complicated nature of the foot pedal adjusted clamping mechanism.
Accordingly, there is a continuing need for a Christmas tree stand, which is relatively inexpensive, simple in construction and use, allowing the Christmas tree to be installed quickly and easily by a single person. What is also needed is an improved Christmas tree stand that can provide a secure and stable base for a variety of tree trunk diameters, tree heights and trunk shapes. What is also needed is a tree stand where a user can easily check the water level of the water basin and conveniently add water as needed. The present invention fulfills these needs and provides other related advantages.